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Where is the Disintegration?
Author(s) -
KIE CLAYTON,
HYNES MARTIN
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
growth and change
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.657
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1468-2257
pISSN - 0017-4815
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-2257.1996.tb00894.x
Subject(s) - urban agglomeration , economic geography , economies of agglomeration , production (economics) , horizontal and vertical , economics , empirical evidence , geography , regional science , economy , economic growth , macroeconomics , philosophy , geodesy , epistemology
A large literature within industrial geography suggests that contemporary production systems are characterized by vertical disintegration processes and the emergence of agglomerations of small manufacturing establishments. According to Allen Scott, one of the most influential contributors to this literature, centers of economic activity in California are especially susceptible to the processes of vertical disintegration and agglomeration. Our concern in this paper is that this “California thesis” has serious empirical difficulties that need to be addressed. Accordingly, this paper reexamines general indicators of vertical disintegration, comparing their temporal record in California to that of the nation as a whole. We examine changes to these indicators for a set of industries that, according to Scott, are characterized by vertical disintegration. Our findings indicate that the weight of evidence does not support the conclusions of Scott concerning vertical disintegration in California. Therefore, his explanation of recent economic growth in California and the utility of his theory as an economic development paradigm require reevaluation.